Making Amends
by QuickStrike15
Summary: Depth Charge and Rhinox do some scavenging for Cybertron's sparks, when Rhinox remembers his horrible past. And this is a really bad time, 'cause Rampage is out to remind Depth Charge of his failures in another time. Seventh in the series.


"MAKING AMENDS"  
  
WRITTEN BY  
QUICKSTRIKE15  
(TIEANBRICE@AOL.COM)  
  
Depth Charge and Rhinox journey to their chosen destination.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Well, we're here. Wherever here is. But, there are sparks, and that's good enough for me."  
RHINOX: "You know, I never thought I'd see Cybertron again, after I went up. But here I am now, fulfilling another mission for Optimus."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Hey, at least you got to see Cybertron again before you did. The last thing I ever got to see was Rampage."  
RHINOX: "Yep. Death really sucks."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Ain't that the truth. Now, let's get searching for these supposed sparks." They travel along, searching high and low for sparks.  
RHINOX: "You know, I've been thinking, and why would sparks choose certain areas to reside in? There are so many of them, wouldn't they have just scattered across the entire planet?"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "That would certainly make things easier for us, but easier for the Vehicons at the same time. I don't know exactly what the plan is for the sparks, but somehow, I think they know what they're doing. I mean, we got the hang of things up in the Matrix."  
RHINOX: "Yeah, we were of a consciousness up there. But do you really think sparks are capable of the same things down here?"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Well, I can't know for sure, but after being of no body for so long, I could make a good guess. I mean, look at Tigerhawk. The aliens send his fused body down to Earth in order to wipe all of us bots out, but Tigatron and Airazor's sparks follow him from wherever they were held, and return to him. Now, that's what I call spark consciousness."  
RHINOX: "Good point. I guess they're hanging around here somewhere, waiting for us."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "And we can't let the Vehicons get their slimy hands on them. I'll search the sky, you take the ground."  
RHINOX: "Gotcha." Depth Charge fires his rockets, and shoots into the air. "Those sparks have to be here somewhere." Rhinox trudges along for a few moments, when he scans a bright blue light. "Is that it?" Rhinox rushes over to the light, and finds the spark radiating it. "Yes!" He activates his Com-Link. "Depth Charge, I've got one. Optimus was right above this area."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "#Good work, Rhinox. Keep it up.#"  
RHINOX: "Now, to capture it." He shakes a bag off of his shoulder, and opens it to get a spark chamber. He holds the spark chamber up to the spark. "Come to papa, baby." Just then, Rhinox has a flashback. He sees himself being captured by Megatron's drones, then having his spark removed, then being reformatted as Tankorr. "No!" He drops the spark chamber, and backs away from the spark. "It's not right! I can't do it!" He flashes back to Tankorr attacking the Maximals under Megatron's orders, then to Rattrap reformatting Tankorr's data tracks, then to Tankorr explaining his new position to Optimus, against both he and Megatron. "I did that! I did it, and I know I did it! I'm...evil! I'm no better than a Vehicon!" He runs away from the spark as fast as he can. "I can't do this, I can't fight with the Maximals now! I'm their enemy!" He finds a dark corner to hide in, and takes refuge there. He breathes heavily, looking around for anyone or anything. Depth Charge activates his Com-Link.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "#I'm having no luck up here, Rhinox. You find any more sparks down there?#" Rhinox fails to reply. "#Rhinox?#" He still doesn't answer. "#Rhinox! Are you hurt? What's going on down there?#" Rhinox answers his Com-Link. "I'm fine. Things were just a little tricky with the spark, so I couldn't reply."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "#Well, that's good. For a second there, I thought Vehicons were attacking. Guess I won't get to kick any bad guy tailpipe. Anyway, I'll take one more sweep, then join you down there.#"  
RHINOX: "Okay." He shuts his Com-Link off. "You might just have to kick some bad guy tailpipe." Rhinox holds his head down. "I made a conscious decision to attack Maximals, to attack my friends. How could I do such things? Just for power? I can't believe I actually shared Megatron's ideals! How could I ever have anything in common with that serpent?! I wanted nothing more than to rule Cybertron, and destroy anyone who got in my way. I can't hurt this planet anymore. I never should have come back. So, I'll leave. Anyway I can!" Rhinox rushes away from the sector, as Depth Charge comes in for a landing.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Rhinox, I'm here. Where are you?" He gets no answer. "He's gotta be around here somewhere. Hey, Rhinox!" Rhinox comes into view, trampling away. "Rhinox, where are you going?! Come back! Rhinox!" Just then, he gets hit over the head.  
  
***  
  
Depth Charge comes to.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Where in the heck? Where's Rhinox? What happened?" He looks around to see his beast form tied down with energy bonds.  
"You got a little caught up in other things, friend."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Death can't make me forget that voice. X!" Rampage rolls into view, a menacing-looking red, white and purple tank drone.  
RAMPAGE: "The one and only!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "What did you do to Rhinox?!"  
RAMPAGE: "I have done nothing. I was going for you, when he rushed off, the perfect distraction, don't you think?"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Rhinox doesn't do anything without good reason! What did you do?!"  
RAMPAGE: "I assure you, the rhinoceros was not tampered with. But I'm sure Thrust will find the answers for you."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "You sent Thrust after him?"  
RAMPAGE: "Of course. Can't have any stray Maximals running around, now can we? It wouldn't be very safe for our meticulous planning."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Get off it, X. I don't have time for you! I've got a mission to complete!"  
RAMPAGE: "Oh, as do I. I was told to bring any wandering sparks back to Megatron, but as you know, I am not one to listen to too many orders, so first, I believe I shall torture you, and the rhino as well, when he gets back."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "You're sick!"  
RAMPAGE: "Isn't it perfect?" He laughs to himself.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Listen, Rampage, I've got one thing to tell you. I am your beginning and your end, and I guess it goes both ways. Neither one of us is ever going to be able to exist without the other. So why don't you let me go, and we can both get on with our lives."  
RAMPAGE: "Oh, no, I can't do that. See, you are right. Causing you pain is what I live to do, but I can find other things to interest me. You didn't eat all my responsibility back on Colony Omicron, remember?"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Shut u about them! I've been to the Matrix, and I've seen my fate! They all forgave me for what happened! When you exist in the Universe, mistakes are there to be made. It all depends on how you handle the mistakes! And let me tell you, I certainly didn't handle it too well. But I've learned something else, too. Once it's over, it's over. Stopping you would never have given those people their lives back, but I know that you'll live to do it again. And I'm gonna stop you from hurting anyone on this planet!"  
RAMPAGE: "Fool! There are no people left on this planet! It's just you, me, and a couple of dozen more Maximals and Vehicons, all warring against each other in order to gain rightful rule of Cybertron!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "That's not true! Maximals don't crave power! We just want Cybertron back to the shape it's meant to be in! Your boss Megatron only wants to control everything, in a stale, cold, boring environment!"  
RAMPAGE: "Yes, I know Megatron. He does tend to think small, doesn't he? Rule would never suit my tastes. I'd prefer to have all of the planet's citizens online, so I could hunt them all down, and eat them, one by one." He laughs again.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Shut that devious mouth of yours before I shut it for you!" He lunges for Rampage, but of course, his bonds hold him down.  
RAMPAGE: "Now, that wasn't took kind, now was it? You could have hurt someone!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Namely you! Look, I learned from the best, 'page, and if you can hurt me, I can hurt ya right back!"  
RAMPAGE: "There it is, that's the attitude I crave! Become angry, become furious! Become the Depth Charge I remember so well!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Oh, no. That Depth Charge died when he took out your sorry carcass back on ancient Earth. But I can give you a new and improved version. I am transformed!" With all of his might, he breaks free of his bonds, and transforms to robot mode. He's a sleek, royal blue, with a transparent frame, so you can see the waves rippling under it. "How ya like the new look?"  
RAMPAGE: "I don't! Now watch mine! Rampage, Obliterate!" He transforms to robot mode. "Now, you'll feel the fear!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Not on your second life!" He leaps into the air, and kicks Rampage onto his back. "Come on, you can do better than that!"  
RAMPAGE: "Trust me, you want me this way if you hope to live!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "That's it, I'm done talking!" He charges toward Rampage at full speed, and as he is getting up, Depth Charge knocks him down again.  
  
***  
  
After running quite a long way, Rhinox finally finds a safe place to stop.  
RHINOX: "Who was I then? What am I now? I was a monster, and maybe I still am! This is inconceivable! I turned against the Maximals, my best friends in the worlds, just to conquer some planet in my name? That is so unlike me! Why would I do that? I'm a 'stop and smell the roses' kind of guy, not a power-hungry murderer! I can't do this, I can't deal with coming back to life only to remember all of the horrible I did at the end of my last one. I can't handle this!"  
THRUST: "Then don't."  
RHINOX: "Who's there?"  
THRUST: "You know who."  
RHINOX: "Yes, I do. Thrust." Thrust rolls up behind him.  
THRUST: "You got it, Big Guy."  
RHINOX: "So, come to blow me away in my time of despair?"  
THRUST: "Hardly. I came to see your triumphant return to our side."  
RHINOX: "No, never. I have nothing to do with the Vehicons anymore. I don't want any part of your team."  
THRUST: "But you just said yourself you did. You can't escape from all of the horrible things you did as Tankorr, so don't. Because no matter what, you and I both know you'll always be Tankorr at heart."  
RHINOX: "That's not true! Is it? Oh, I don't know! I feel like I'm splitting in two! One of me is the Rhinox everyone knows and loves, the easy-going, calm and collected one. And another part is this dark, seedy representation of my soul, who desires nothing more than power and control. But I don't remember either side well enough anymore to sway in one direction. I'm so confused!"  
THRUST: "Look, what you need through this is a friend, and I can be your friend. I can help you sort this all out. Trust me."  
RHINOX: "In the category of things you'd least likely want to hear from a Vehicon, 'trust me' has got to rank number one."  
THRUST: "I may be a Vehicon, but I've got nothing to fear from you, so why would I bother helping you find where you truly belong, when I could scrap you purely for almost scrapping my boss, Megatron?"  
RHINOX: "That is a good point. But then why would you turn against Megatron, and not scrap me?"  
THRUST: "Because even bad guys sometimes need friends, and maybe Jetstorm didn't see it, and Obsidian and Stryka have their own little club, but I always saw Tankorr as my friend."  
RHINOX: "You did? But I never saw you in that light."  
THRUST: "You were a little preoccupied at the time. After all, it can be sort of scrambling to go from 'Tankorr destroy, Tankorr destroy', to 'and soon, Cybertron will be all mine!'"  
RHINOX: "Maybe you're right." He pauses for a moment. "No, wait, what in the world am I saying? Of course you're not right! You're a Vehicon! I can't trust you!"  
THRUST: "Maybe you could, if you find out which side you belong on. Take your time, pal. Don't worry, you know who you really are inside." He transforms to vehicle mode, and slowly drives away.  
RHINOX: "He's definitely on to something. I'm the only one who knows who I am inside. But things just get so scrambled on the way up to my head! Show me who I am, Matrix. Show me who I am, Oracle. Show me!" Things begin to flash in his head. He sees himself sniffing flowers, then he sees Tankorr attacking the Maximals. He sees himself defending Dinobot and Rattrap from Tarantulas' Energon discharge virus arrow, then he sees Tankorr stealing the Key to Vector Sigma program. Then, he sees Depth Charge calling after him as he runs off. He snaps back into reality. "Wait, Depth Charge! He was calling after me to come back! That means he saw me run away! So if he did, how come Thrust found me first? Unless...Depth Charge's in real trouble! I've got to help him!" He tramples back to Depth Charge's location.  
THRUST: "Stupid move. Thrust, Overdrive!" He transforms to robot mode, and begins shooting at Rhinox from behind. He turns around.  
RHINOX: "Hey, whatever to trust and friendship between Vehicons?"  
THRUST: "There are such things, between Vehicons! And you're obviously not one of us!" He continues shooting, and Rhinox hides behind a wall. "You can't save yourself that easily!" He quickly wheels over to the wall, and begins firing rapidly behind it. He eventually realizes that there's no one there. "Huh?" Rhinox comes charging from around the building, and when Thrust looks back to where he was standing before, Rhinox plows straight into his gut, and his horns skewer through his frame.  
RHINOX: "Sorry, Thrust, but I know who I am now. I am a friend to those who are friendly. And you don't qualify!" He tosses Thrust's limp from his horns, and runs back to Depth Charge. "I hope I'm not too late to save him!"  
  
***  
  
Depth Charge continues to grapple with Rampage.  
RAMPAGE: "You can't fight fate forever! Your destiny is to fall at my feet!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "You don't get this part too easily, do you? I don't have my life to waste on you! I still have a mission to fulfill!"  
RAMPAGE: "You won't get the chance to finish it! Because unlike you, I have the time to torture!" He headbutts Depth Charge in the chest, taking him aback.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "That does it! It's time to show you what I'm really made of!" He puts his wrists together, opens his hands, clenches his fingers around air, and holds his arms to his side.  
RAMPAGE: "A desperate move from a little guppy? Bring it on!" He laughs out loud.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Taste this!" He holds his arms out, and a giant orb made of water shoots out from his hands.  
RAMPAGE: "What?!" The orb smacks Rampage in the gut, knocking him on the ground.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Neat trick, huh? I like to call it the aqua-ken."  
RAMPAGE: "Well, ken you handle this?!" Rampage springs back onto his feet, and fires lasers at Depth Charge. He folds his fins over to protect himself.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "This is good enough for laser fire, but what if he starts throwing his missiles around?"  
RAMPAGE: "Feel the fear, fish! You won't exist much longer!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Hey, this life is my last chance to shine! I spent way too much of the last one on you, and you're not taking my last chance from me!"  
RAMPAGE: "He says in a defensive position! And now, for grilled salmon!" He activates his missile launchers.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Darn it! I've got no cover! This might just be my time!"  
RAMPAGE: "Farewell, you seaweed!" He aims, and fires. But in the act of shooting, he is jarred from his spot. The missile misses.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "What happened?" Depth Charge folds his fins back behind him, and sees Rhinox. "Rhinox!"  
RHINOX: "Thought you could use a hand."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "I'm not ashamed to say I did. So what happened to you back there?"  
RHINOX: "The usual. Had to do a little soul searching, find out what makes me who I am."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "I hear ya."  
RAMPAGE: "Oh, how touching. It makes me want to cry...bloody murder!"  
RHINOX: "Is that Rampage?!"  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Crazier than ever!" Rampage litters the battlefield with missiles. Depth Charge and Rhinox expertly maneuver around each one. "We can't keep this up much longer! We need some cover!"  
RHINOX: "Coming right up. I am transformed!" He transforms to robot mode, a brilliant green color, with solid steel lining his hands and feet. "Brace yourself!" Rhinox stomps on the ground, and the surface splits open.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "No way!" Rampage is thrown off balance, and falls, as the ground juts upward, creating a shield for the Maximals. "How did you do that?"  
RHINOX: "It's all in the stomp."  
RAMPAGE: "A little natural disaster won't save you!" He continues firing missiles, right into the makeshift shield.  
RHINOX: "Let's take this guy out."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "I'm with you!" Depth Charge starts firing energy discs from his hands. They whiz by Rampage's face, throwing off his aim.  
RAMPAGE: "Stop doing that!"  
RHINOX: "Watch this." He shoots force blasts from his palms. They're invisible, and all that can be seen is the air around it being pushed. They hit Rampage in the elbows and knees.  
RAMPAGE: "What's going on?! I can't even see what's hitting me!"  
RHINOX: "That's the idea!" The force blasts weaken Rampage's joints, and eventually, they crack apart, and the Vehicon falls to pieces.  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Nice shooting."  
RHINOX: "Thanks."  
RAMPAGE: "How could I be defeated like this?! You won't get away with this, Maximals! Once I'm back in fighting shape, I'll finish you all!"  
RHINOX: "Put a lid on it!" Rhinox fires at his neck, and his head is blown off of his shoulders. "There, all done. Now for the sparks."  
DEPTH CHARGE: "Let's round 'em up!" He transforms to beast mode, and flies into the air. "I should be able to find those sparks easily up here." He takes a long sweep of the area. "Hmm, nothing." He activates his Com-Link. Hey, Rhinox, I think we lost them."  
RHINOX: "#No, we didn't.#" Rhinox is surrounded by four sparks, all seeming to give him a hug. "Maybe I did try to rule once, but that was under a different name, a different body, a different mindset. I won't ever try to hurt you again, for I'm a Maximal once more, and I'm home at last. Now, let's get this planet back into shape, because I can't wait to smell the flowers." 


End file.
